The Vatican is warning people who plan to travel to the beatification
of Pope John Paul II to look out for scammers claiming to sell tickets
for the ceremony.
"It is very important to make as clear as
possible that no tickets are needed to attend the beatification of John
Paul II," said monsignor Guido Marini, master of Papal Liturgical
Celebrations, according to Vatican Radio.
As in life, John Paul
is drawing huge crowds after his death.
Two million pilgrims are
expected to flock to the Vatican for the special Mass, which will be
presided over by Pope Benedict XVI and take place in St. Peter's Square
on May 1 - the first Sunday after Easter.
But officials became
concerned after hearing about "unauthorized offers by some tour
operators, especially on the Internet," asking people to pay fees for
access to the event, the Catholic News Service reported.
No
tickets are required for the beatification Mass of Pope John Paul II,
and any papal events that do require tickets are always free, the Vatican emphasized.
There
has been huge interest in John Paul's road to sainthood, with his
beatification -- the first step in the process -- coming six years after
his death.
(That timetable is very fast in Vatican terms. Pope Benedict
XVI dispensed with rules that normally impose a five-year waiting
period before beatification can even start.)
Born
Karol Wojtyla in Poland, the charismatic John Paul spent more than a
quarter-century as the head of the Catholic Church.
He spoke more than a
dozen languages and visited more than 100 countries, setting an
unheard-of pattern of pastoral travel.